The present study sought to investigate how four metacognitive interventions influenced the degree of cognitive load experienced by learners during a complex training task, as well as how cognitive load subsequently affected learners’ self-efficacy, procedural knowledge and skill performance. Additionally, cognitive load was examined as a mediator of the relationship between the metacognitive interventions and learning outcomes. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four metacognitive prompt conditions where they received prompts sequenced over time based on specificity during three training periods. Within each training period, participants received either a generic prompt at Time 1 and a generic prompt at Time 2, a generic prompt at Time 1 and a specific prompt at Time 2, a specific prompt at Time 1 and a generic prompt at Time 2, or a specific prompt at Time 1 and a specific prompt at Time 2. Results of a structural equation path analysis indicated that none of the four metacognitive interventions were significantly related to cognitive load or to any of the learning outcomes. Cognitive load was significantly related to self-efficacy such that participants who experienced greater cognitive load reported lower self-efficacy with regard to the training task; cognitive load was not significantly related to procedural knowledge or skill performance. Implications of these findings are discussed.
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